Wrench



Jan. i4, 1941. H. L. BJORKMAN 2,228,904

WRENCH Filed May l0, 1939 Patented Jan. 14, 1941 l nNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to wrenches of the adjustable type, and the primary object thereof is to provide a tool which can be easily and quickly adjusted to different sized nuts.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wrench with a pair of adjustable jaws and to arrange the adjusting mechanism in such a way that practically no strain will be exercised on the said adjusting means while the wrench is being used, and thereby insuring a long life and usefulness of such a tool.

A further and important object of the invention to provide a spring release of the adjustment arrangement. Pressing the release spring down and shifting the sliding carriage up or down the handle, will shift the wrench jaws instantly to any desired position.

With these and other objects in view, all of which will more fully appear in the following speciiication of my invention, the same comprises the novel combination, construction, and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described and shown in the accompanying drawing and claimed.

In the drawing in which,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the wrench in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation with parts broken away showing inner construction thereof, sub stantially on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the wrench handle 4 with both jaws and sliding carriage removed to expose construction of same.

Fig. 4 represents a perspective view of the adjustable jaw I.

Fig. 5 is a sectional View through line 5-5 of drawing Fig. 1.

Like numerals denote like parts all through the various ligures.

In carrying out my invention I provide a handle 4, which has a slot 26 near its middle section, teeth I4 are cut on one side of same to allow a gear wheel E to move up or down in said slot 2S. The upper part or head of the handle 4 has angular inclined slideways to allow jaws I and 2 to slide through a sleeve 3 toward or away from each other, depending on up or down movements of the said jaws I and 2.

The sleeve 3 is provided with guide ribs I5 and I6 to guide the jaws I and 2 and grooves I1 and I8 are cut in jaws I and 2 to slide on the aforementioned guides of sleeve 3.

The jaws I and 2 have channel like grooves I 9, at their lower portions to engage guide ribs 24, of the slider member l. Backplate I3 prevents slider member 'i from coming ofi handle 4 and is securely connected to slider members 'I and 9 by bolts II and I2.

The ratchet wheel 5 and gear 3 having teeth 5 il and 3d, respectively, are rigidly secured together and are rotatabiy mounted by axle- 29 in plates 9 and IIJ. A spring 8 fastened to slider member plate lll by a rivet 22 extends through slot 2G of handle 4 and slot 23 of slider member 10 plate 9, a tooth 28 on said spring 8 engaging teeth 2T of ratchet wheel 5.

It can now be plainly understood that by pressing down on spring ratchet wheel 5 is released for action, the whole slidable carriage being 15 movable up or down on wrench handle 4 thereby decreasing or increasing the distance between the faces 33 and 34 of slidable jaws I and 2 of the wrench. The upper slider member 'I is guided in its up or down movement in slot 26 of 20 handle 4 by a guide I3 and the lower slider member 9 by guide 2|,

It is obvious that the slidable jaws I and 2 are always supported and firmly held by sleevebacks 3| and 32 of sleeve 3 and nearly all applied strain 2o in using the wrench is absorbed by these supports.

What I claim is:

In a wrench the combination of a pair of slidable jaws, each jaw having a transverse groove at its lower end, a handle having at one end a pair of angulai` inclined slideways and a sleeve for the purpose of guiding and supporting the said pair of slidable jaws, said handle having a longitudinally extending slot through the middle section, rack teeth formed on one side of said slot,

a carriage slidably mounted on the middle part of the handle, said carriage comprising a longitudinal stem having transverse ribs at one end slideably engaging said grooves and a plate mem- 40 ber on each side of said handle secured to said stem, a combination gear and ratchet wheel rotatably connected to the plate members of the carriage, said gear engaging the rack, a spring having a tooth on one side and attached to one plate member of the carriage to detachably engage the ratchet wheel and lock the jaws against spreading movement, guides extending between the plate members of the carriage and attached thereto and through the slot of the handle for the purpose of guiding the slidable carriage in its up or down movement.

HUGO LEONARD BJORKMAN. 

